UIL makes rule changes for football, golf

The University Interscholastic League announced several rules modifications last week, and the sports of football, golf and cross country will experience the most impact.
In football, the UIL will essentially follow the current NCAA rules for timing with the use of a 40-second play clock.
“We won’t have to wait for the official to spot the ball,” Dylan Stark, Bowie head football coach, said. “We like to play fast. I’m all for it, and I don’t see an issue with it.”
After a play when an official signals the ball dead, the play clock will immediately begin a 40-second count.
In the event the 40-second clock is running and the ball is not ready to be snapped after 20 seconds into the count, a referee will declare a timeout and signal the play clock be set at 25 seconds.
The clock will be set at 25 seconds in the following cases: penalty administration, a charged team timeout or an injury timeout for an offensive player only. The play clock will be set to 40 seconds for an injured player from the defense.
Other instances when a 25-second clock will be used are measurement, after a kick down, score, the start of a period, overtime possessions, administrative stoppages and whether an offensive player’s helmet comes completely off during a play.
Jonathon Horton, who is entered his sixth year as the Bowie boys’ and girls’ golf coach, remembers a time when coaches couldn’t speak to their players at all. Read the mid-week edition of The Bowie News for more on this story.